Jo's 5 Final Intern Tips & Farewell

Well, I’ve reached the end. As I’m sat in the UKK office on my final day, reflecting on the last few months, I thought it would be nice to sum up my experience by sharing some of my top tips.

So, here’s 5 things I’ve learnt:

1. Don’t assume that because the internship you’re interested in is fashion related it means that you have to dress like you’re straight out of the business section of a designer catalogue. This may be true for some jobs, of course, but my experience has been completely different. I came to my interview - even having done my research and knowing that the company had the tag-line Purveyors of Kool (cm’on, how obvious did they have to make it for me?) - wearing a Winser London shift dress, heels, and a statement necklace. After a twenty-minute walk from the bus in the pouring rain, I arrived at my interview with sore feet, soaking wet and looking like a rag doll. How I got this job I will never know. Needless to say, the dress was ruined and I have since opted for a more casual look.

2. You should definitely get to know your co-workers. Even though you’re not expecting to be there for long, and they’re probably all your superiors (even if, like me, you’re older than half of them), from my experience they’ll make you feel like one of the team. You might even find out that they’re actually nice people too, and someone might be willing to give you lifts home (thank you Amy!). And if you’re lucky, and I mean really lucky, they’ll make you laugh - a lot.

3. Be prepared to do a bit of everything. Your job title may say e-commerce assistant, marketing intern or even just professional desk sitter, but I guarantee you will, at times, be run off your feet doing whatever needs to be done. Trust me. I have carried more boxes upstairs than I ever hoped to in my life, but I’m seeing the gains! 😉

4. Don’t think of yourself as just a lowly intern. You’ll have plenty of opportunities to contribute to the company, so make sure you work hard and keep busy. Even if it’s just coming up with some good marketing ideas or improving a process that is already in place, you should try and do work that you can be proud of.

5. Finally, and I can’t stress this one enough – never write a blog that refers to the fact that you haven’t made anyone a cup of tea or coffee! You will be making hot drinks for everyone for the next two months of your life. Seriously.

That being said, I have loved every minute and I’ll miss seeing everyone who’s helped to make my time here so wonderful. But that’s me, signing off for the last time.